Heartland Marimba Festival Comes to Cedar City

Published: May 26, 2016 | Author: Ashley Pollock | Read Time: 2 minutes

The Heartland Marimba Festival Academy Out West will be held June 3-14, 2016 at Southern Utah University. Multiple concerts will be available to the public in the Thorley Recital Hall. These concerts will feature various guest artists, including Matthew Coley, Michael Burritt, Clocks in Motion, and Southern Utah University’s own Director of Percussion, Lynn Vartan. Concerts are free of charge. There is a suggested donation of $10.

The concert series is as follows:

• June 8, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. featuring Academy participants and faculty
• June 10, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. featuring Clocks in Motion and Michael Burritt
• June 11, 2016 at7:30 p.m. featuring Marimba Orchestra, Clocks in Motion, and Michael Burritt

Under the leadership of artistic director Matthew Coley, the Heartland Marimba Festival launched in 2014. The focus of the festival is to “have community outreach, create educational experiences, generate new repertoire, and provide opportunities for professionals”. This year-round festival consists of academy sessions, concerts, and opportunities for students to learn about the life of a performing artist. With Matthew Coley, Kyle Flens, Sean Kleve, Garrett Mendelow, Michael Burritt, and Lynn Vartan involved, the festival will make that a reality.

This is the first year for the Heartland Marimba Festival to be held in Cedar City. Matthew Coley came to Southern Utah University in 2012 as a guest artist for the Satellite Salon. Coley was so impressed with the percussion program at SUU that he approached Dr. Lynn Vartan about hosting the Heartland Marimba Festival Academy Out West. Having the Heartland Marimba Festival in Cedar City is a great opportunity for the University. Vartan said that, “Students will be taking lessons, recording music, playing concerts, sharing in masterclasses and sightseeing with all the guest artists.”

While lessons and masterclasses are for the students who have paid to participate in the Academy, there will be multiple concerts open to the community. Performing at these concerts will be guest artists as well as students who are attending the Academy. Talking about the guest artists, Vartan said, “Matthew Coley and I have worked together many times in a percussion duo. Michael Burritt is considered one of the greatest artists and teachers in percussion. Clocks in Motion is also a group that I know a lot about, but I have been waiting for the opportunity to work with them.” This will be the first event where Lynn Vartan mallets can be experienced. They are available for purchase through Steve Weiss Music.

Listen to the rich sounds of the Marimba June 3 through 14th at the Heartland Marimba Festival Academy Out West at Southern Utah University. For more information about the College of Performing and Visual Art’s Department of Music percussion program, please visit www.suu.edu/pva/music/percussion.

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